McBride to Fire no done deal

Fire fans seem to love the idea of Brian McBride coming to Chicago -- but what do the Fire players think of the idea?

After all, if McBride joins the Fire, someone likely would lose his starting spot. More than likely, at least one player would be sent packing.

"If [McBride] is asking for designated player money ($400,000 or more), players might get moved or traded or dropped," Fire forward Chad Barrett said. "There's a good chance he would take my spot, but I think I've gotten off to a good start and am contributing. The coaching staff knows that."

Barrett's four goals lead the Fire, which is in a three-way tie for the best record in Major League Soccer. The Fire's 19 goals are second behind Los Angeles' 22.

"I heard [the McBride news] mentioned this morning," Fire defender C.J. Brown said after Thursday's practice. "It would be great for us. He's a goal scorer.

"We have a strong group. Chad is playing unbelievable. Personally, I don't think you bring in anyone and break up what you have. But you also want more talent on the team. It would push players to keep performing if they want to start."

In order for the Arlington Heights native to join the Fire, he first must sign with Major League Soccer. Toronto FC would get first rights to McBride because it has the highest allocation ranking after finishing with the worst record in 2007. The Fire could acquire those rights by trade. According to a Fire source, Toronto already has reached out to the Fire about McBride.

McBride spent 4 1/2 seasons in England's Premier League with Fulham before announcing Wednesday he was returning to the U.S. While at Fulham, McBride scored 40 goals in 150 games and was twice named the team's player of the season.

While the Fire discusses a deal with Toronto that would bring McBride to Chicago, all McBride can do is wait.

"It's not a done deal," said Matthew McBride, Brian's brother and North American agent. "We've had preliminary discussions with the Fire and MLS. We've expressed an interest in the Fire and the league and that interest has been reciprocated. The last thing we were told is that the Fire would have to make an allocation deal for Brian's rights."

"It's a tough situation. To avoid players picking their own team, MLS created these rules. That puts us on the sidelines."

Even if a deal is worked out between the Fire and Toronto, McBride cannot join the Fire until the July 15 transfer window.

"He's been on the road a lot of years and is excited to come home," Matthew McBride said.

Corner kicks

The Fire is expected to announce a July 30 friendly against Everton of the Premier League on Friday. ... Barcelona's likely opponent for its Aug. 3 exhibition at Soldier Field is Mexico's Chivas de Guadalajara. The Spanish league superclub has also scheduled an exhibition against the New York Red Bulls at Giants Stadium in August (this sentence corrects an error that occurred in some early editions).